Southport suspect faces terrorism and biological weapons charges
Axel Rudakubana, 18, accused of murdering three young girls in Southport, now faces additional charges, including one under the Terrorism Act.
On Tuesday, Rudakubana was charged with producing a biological toxin, in violation of Section 1 of the Biological Weapons Act 1974. He is also charged with possessing a document in PDF format, which authorities deem could be useful for planning or committing an act of terrorism, under Section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000. Despite these charges, Counter Terrorism Police are not currently treating the Southport attack itself as a terrorist incident.
Rudakubana was previously charged with the murders of six-year-old Bebe King, seven-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe, and nine-year-old Alice Dasilva Aguiar, who died at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class on July 29.
For charges under the Biological Weapons Act, consent from the government’s law officers—the attorney general or solicitor general—is required, which has been granted by the Crown Prosecution Service.
A pre-trial hearing initially set for Friday, October 25, in Liverpool was postponed to allow all charges to be addressed simultaneously. Rudakubana is now scheduled to appear in Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, October 30.